Refrigerator



(No Model.)

J. H. ,STI'FFLER.

Refrigerator.

Patented Dec. 21,1880.

HER, WASHINGTON D C UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

JOHN H. STIFFLER, OF BEOKLEYSVILLE, MARYLAND.

REFRIGERATOR.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 235,713, dated December 21, 1880.

Application filed April 8, 1880. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that 1, JOHN H. SIIFFLER, of Beckleysville, Baltimore county, State of Maryland, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Refrigerating Apparatus; and I hereby declare the same to be fully, clearly, and exactly described as follows, ref erence being had to the accompanying drawing, illustrating the device in perspective.

My invention has for its object to provide a refrigerating apparatus for use in connection with a well or other cold vault, taking advantage of the naturally low temperature therein, and thus furnishing a device adapted for use on farms unprovided with ice-houses. The temperature of a well of a depth of from fifteen to thirty feet is sufficiently low to prevent the deterioration for a considerable period of time of even the most perishable articles of food, and taking advantage of this fact I have devised the apparatus about to be described, consisting of a casin g adapted to be mounted over a well, and having a chamber provided with suitable shelves, which may be lowered to a point near the surface of the water.

In the accompanying drawing, A is a easing having a hinged door, a, secured by a catch, a, and provided at the top with a roller, 1). At the side is a drum, 0, on whose shaft is mounted a gear-wheel, d, and a ratchetwheel, 0, with which latter a pawl, D, on the casing A engages. A smaller wheel, 6, on the shaft f meshes with the wheel 01, and a crank, E, is secured to its shaft.

B is a platform, which sustains the casing A and rests over the well.

G is a casing projecting from the platform downward, and having ventilating-openings h h. WVithin this casing slides the chamber I, which is fitted with suitable shelves, and has a number of ventilating-openings, m m m, to allow the cold air to enter. It has also a hinged door, t', secured by a catch, 11, and an air-chamber, I, at the bottom, to prevent the possibility of its submersion in the water, and to give notice when it has reached the surface of the same. This chamber is suspended by a chain, 1), led over the roller 1) and secured to the drum O.

In operation, the casin g I being raised within the casing A, the doors a t are opened and the articles to be preserved or cooled are laid on the shelves in the casing I. The doors being closed, the casing is lowered until it nearly reaches the surface of the water, where the temperature is low enough to preserve meats and other perishable articles of food for many days.

The device is simple, is readily applied to any well, and is thoroughly efficient in use.

What I claim is- In combination with the casing A, having door a and Windlass and chain, the laterallyperforated guiding-casing Gr, having an open bottom, and the perforated refrigeratingchamber I, having air chamber 1, as described.

JOHN H. STIFFLER.

lVitnesses:

CARLTON T. BROWNE, J AS. L. GALLAGHER. 

